1:44:18, AP 7:55 I did it! I beat 1:45! Thanks to Rachelle. I was thinking 1:50 would be pushing it, but earlier this week Rachelle said she thought I could do 1:45. At first I was like "you're adorable for suggesting that." I got a 1:40 on this course when I was in pretty good shape 2 years ago, so 1:45 seemed too lofty right now. I just got 1:55 in the Big Cottonwood Half 6 weeks ago and 1:54 in the Utah Half 3 weeks ago. But then on Monday I started thinking maybe I could do it. Then after that I decided I would start with Rachelle and hang with her as long as I could. I thought for sure I'd have to pull away eventually...just didn't think I had the depth yet. I met Teena at the buses and got to ride up with her, that was a lot of fun. :) I had wanted to warm up for at least a few miles so I could be ready to start faster than I normally do, but by the time we got up there there was only about 15 minutes. I ran a little bit and then I started getting really nervous since I didn't warm up very much. I thought maybe I would just bag the pace thing and do what I was used to and run by myself (I've never ran a race with a pacer before!) I had to talk myself into finding Rachelle. =0) I found her and it was so nice to meet her in person! I love meeting FRB'ers! So we started out and I fully expected to have a hard time but it didn't seem too bad. -Still faster than I would have gone on my own, but I wasn't breathing too hard. I was even able to talk a little bit. It was so fun running with Rachelle and the other pacer Jorge and the others in the group! I will definitely run with a pacer again. Rachelle does SUCH a great job! I really appreciate elite runners like her who take the time to help other runners do better than they could on their own. The miles went much faster than I thought they would until mile 8 when I had my first mental breakdown. I got a few steps behind Rachelle and I was really tempted to fall back. Like....really tempted. So I thought to myself "Will I be mad after the race is over that I lost my 1:45 at this point?" Since I wasn't dying I knew I could hang on a least a little longer. Soon after I felt better so I was glad I didn't fall back. This same thing happened about 6 more times. And each time I told myself I could keep going even though it was uncomfortable because I really wanted to get 1:45 since it had once seemed so lofty. My feet hurt, I had blisters, my left ankle hurt and I was on the verge of some GI issues. Once I got to mile 11 and 12 I knew I was OK. I was even able to go ahead of the group with a half mile to go. When I got to the track I felt like puking and was really glad to see the finish line! I saw my family (we're all down here for a family vacation...it has been so fun!) and I waved because I knew they would know I was making my lofty goal and they would be so proud. :) Best feeling in the world! I knew I gave it my all because of the puking feeling and I had no interest in the treats. I need to feel that way after a race more often! Now I know that I need to go faster in my non-easy runs and my races. No excuses now! My plan is to keep building up my mileage 10% each week and get a good base so I can start training for Ogden in May. Hoping to BQ next year (and more!) Thanks for pacing me Rachelle! :) I had so much fun! Splits: 8:04, 7:38, 7:36, 7:22, 7:40, 7:45, 8:02, 8:24, 7:50, 8:16, 8:23, 8:01, 8:06, 7:29
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